Bosses around the country this week are going to be dealing with a rash or sick employees. Epidemics such as the Turian Flu, Reaper Virus, and Shepard's Gout (best not to ask about that one) will be working their way through the populace come Tuesday, and, from that point on, it's fairly unlikely that anyone is going to be getting any real work done. There are other releases, too, for fighting fans and sports gamers alike, but we all know what you are waiting for:

Mass Effect 3(PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

Until Mass Effect 2, there hadn't been a BioWare-developed sequel to a BioWare game since the seminal Baldur's Gate 2. This is the first time, though, that the RPG-juggernaut has developed a third game in one of its franchises. Mass Effect 3 is one of the most highly anticipated games of a year that has only just begun, continuing the series' addictive and engaging blend of third-person shooting and RPG mechanics, all forming the framework for a long and compelling narrative.

The narrative is so large, in fact, that it directly stretches across all three games. Threads from each of the previous two titles will see their ends here, in the endcap to the trilogy, with the ability for players to import their saves from Mass Effect 2 (themselves often based on saves from the original), shaping the universe based on their previous decisions before they've even set foot in it. Decisions big and small alike have far-reaching consequences in the Mass Effect universe, and Mass Effect 3 intends to bring that home. Oh, it also has a multiplayer horde-mode-esque spiel. Mass Effect 3 will be out Tuesday, March 6.

Street Fighter X Tekken(PS3, Xbox 360)

There's a Japanese PS2 title that never made it over to the West called Namco X Capcom. As the name would imply, it contained iconic characters from a diverse range of NAMCO and Capcom properties, from the iconic to the esoteric, mashing them together under a strategy-RPG framework, à la Disgaea or Final Fantasy Tactics. Street Fighter X Tekken, though possessed of a narrower focus, is more along the lines of what fans of the two companies really want: a fighting game crossover that allows them to see who would really win in a fight: Kazuya or Ryu, Hwoarang or Juri.

A tag-team fighting game, Street Fighter X Tekken is a game in the tradition of Capcom vs. SNK and its sequel. With dozens of fighters to pit against one another, it's unlikely that fans of either franchise will be bored for lack of content anytime soon. Street Fighter X Tekken smashes its way into stores this Tuesday, March 6.

And so the yearly battle of the baseball games begins. In the Sony-exclusive corner, The Show walks out its most recent iteration: MLB 12: The Show, on the PlayStation 3 and Vita. This year's entry touts Cross-play between the two consoles, allowing those with both to continue a game being played on one system on the other. Take your PS3 season on the go!

Meanwhile, on pretty much every console you can still find in a GameStop, Major League Baseball 2K12 continues its newest tradition: the $1 million perfect game contest. Pitch a perfect game and record the feat, from system power-on to completion, and send the video in for that $1 million payday. There's also a baseball game in there, and it's the option for a baseball simulator on any non-Sony console.

Both titles are up to bat on Tuesday, March 6.

Unit 13(PS Vita)

Tired of churning out SOCOM game after SOCOM game, Zipper Interactive is bringing something new to the PlayStation Vita with Unit 13. Oh, it's still a third-person shooter, and players are still tasked with completing objective-based missions alongside a partner or team, but the trappings are different and there's a scoring system in place (à la Bulletstorm) that rewards a diverse array of playstyles. For those who've had their fill of Uncharted but still have an itchy trigger finger, Unit 13 will be in stores on Tuesday, March 6.

Blades of Time(PS3, Xbox 360)

Once upon a time there was a game called X-Blades. Gaijin Entertainment would prefer that you not remember that game, if at all possible, and supplant its memory with their spiritual successor, Blades of Time. Where X-Blades was an extremely rough-around-the-edges hack-and-slash game with a bouncy, busty heroine and nonsensical plot, Blades of Time is a hack-and-slash-shooter with time-bending antics and a bouncy, busty heroine. Still two for three, but that's not a bad thing. Blades of Time aims to fulfill your high-octane action needs this Tuesday, March 6.

The Rest:

Country Dance All Stars (Xbox 360; Tuesday, March 6)

CRUSH3D (3DS; Tuesday, March 6)

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (Vita; Tuesday, March 6)

miCoach (PS3, Xbox 360; Tuesday, March 6)

NCIS 3D (3DS; Tuesday, March 6)

Ridge Racer Unbounded (PC; Tuesday, March 6)

The Sims 3 Plus Showtime (PC; Tuesday, March 6)

Top Gun: Hard Lock (PC, PS3, X360; Tuesday, March 6)

DLC Slated for release this week:

Fun! Fun! Minigolf TOUCH! (3DS eShop; Thursday, March 8)

Mass Effect 3: From Ashes (PC, PSN, XBLM; Tuesday, March 6)

Hidden Gem of the Week:

I Am Alive

There's never really been a "horror" genre in games. It's always been "survival horror," because it's the element of survival, of trying to subsist on extremely limited means and supplies, that makes playing a game that tries to scare you consistently engaging. I Am Alive focuses in on the first part of that: survival. If The Road were a videogame...

Actions in I Am Alive are intended to have drastic consequences, responses positive, negative, or both, but definitely measurable. Further, character behavior is decidedly dynamic, with foes that care about their own survival to such a degree that it matters to them whether or not your gun has a bullet in it or, more accurately, whether or not it might have one. I Am Alive hits the Xbox LIVE Arcade on Wednesday, March 7.